Systemic failures and a punitive approach to law and order by the Northern Territory government have created conditions in which the death in custody of a disabled Warlpiri man in Mparntwe/Alice Springs was a "devastating and predictable outcome", according to legal and community advocates.
Kumanjayi White, 24, was living in supported accommodation and under state guardianship when he died last week after being restrained by two plain-clothed NT Police officers. His arrest followed an alleged altercation with a security guard at a Coles supermarket.
Speaking broadly in response to the tragedy, national justice coalition Change the Record said the Country Liberal Party government's approach has created the "very conditions that make these deaths not only possible but inevitable".
Since coming to power, the NT government has introduced several tough-on-crime measures — including stricter bail laws, a lowered age of criminal responsibility, and expanded mandatory sentencing — without apology. These changes have contributed to a sharp rise in incarceration rates, with more than half of NT prisoners currently held on remand.
Punthamara woman and Change the Record chief executive Jade Lane said the NT government had ignored the lessons of the past, instead "doubling down" on failed approaches that "escalate policing and incarceration that ostensibly target Aboriginal children".
"Their deliberate policy direction — entrenching police powers, expanding criminalisation, and stripping funding from community-led justice — has created the very conditions that make these deaths not only possible but inevitable," she said.
At the same time, Ms Lane argued funding has been withdrawn from Indigenous-led initiatives like the Kurdiji Wita Yuendumu Cultural Authority, while other preventative and community-driven programs have been "ignored or dismantled".
"Instead of resourcing community-led solutions, the NT Government is giving police more power to detain, restrain, and criminalise our people — reintroducing the use of spit hoods on children, increasing stop-and-search powers, and even enabling surveillance and harassment in schools," she said.
"These policies are pushing things in one direction only — towards more harm, more incarceration, and more deaths. The NT Government is creating conditions where another death like this is not just likely but guaranteed."
In the wake of Mr White's death, the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) renewed its call for investment in diversion, rehabilitation, and community justice programs — efforts they argue would reduce harmful interactions between Aboriginal people, police, and the courts.
NAAJA Chair Theresa Roe said that while the organisation supported the work of police, the Territory needed to "stop locking up Aboriginal people in record numbers," a figure she said currently averages 35 people a day.
"It isn't the answer," she said. "Crime is not decreasing. Instead of building new prisons, let's find out why a young person had to resort to shoplifting and what could have been done to prevent this tragic event."
Ms Roe said they had written to a wide range of stakeholders — including the Chief Minister, police, courts, corrections, legal services, and Aboriginal leaders — to pursue solutions that prioritise community safety while moving away from incarceration.
"We are letting our people down," she said. "We need to do better because Territorians are better than this."
"I look forward to sitting down with the Chief Minister and others to find a new way forward that will see the Northern Territory as a place of hope and advantage, and not despair and disadvantage."
Despite mounting pressure, the Chief Minister has refused to respond directly to concerns raised by Indigenous organisations. The CLP government maintains that its mandate is to pursue tough-on-crime policies — even as experts warn these measures could make communities less safe over time.
Ms Lane said Aboriginal children across the Territory continue to be disproportionately policed and surveilled, leading to high and growing detention rates.
"Many are now being held on remand for longer periods, for lesser charges, simply because they cannot access bail under harsh new laws," she said.
"They're locked in cells, far from family, country, and culture — frightened and alone."
Reflecting on the death of Kumanjayi White, Ms Lane emphasised that the tragedy was not an isolated event, but part of a systemic pattern.
"This is a system that continues to brutalise Aboriginal people and ignores the solutions that work: culturally strong, community-led justice, health, and disability supports that keep people safe," she said.
"Our communities have been calling for change for decades. We need voices from every corner of this country to echo those calls—loudly, persistently, and without compromise."
